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induction loop system enables children to move freely about in class while
still remaining in contact with the teacher's voice.
Integration
The undoubted achievements made possible by earlier and more
accurate diagnosis, auditory training and hearing aids have made the
integration of deaf and partially deaf children into the hearing community
and in particular in ordinary day schools, a very live issue. Many papers
were read at last year's conference on this subject. At the same time it is
widely felt in the educational field that the claims for results of such
integration are exaggerated. There are undoubtedly cases where children
theoretically able to manage in a hearing environment become maladjusted
there and improve on removal to a special unit where they are able to
mix with other children handicapped like themselves. It is also true that
deaf adults left to themselves do tend to mix with other deaf persons
although they are quite able to manage in a hearing community.
The Non-oral Child
To the outsider there would appear no doubt that some children leave
schools for the deaf unable to communicate orally with their hearing
fellows. Various reasons have been given for these failures—late diagnosis,
residential schooling as opposed to day schools, insufficient use of hearing
aids, separation from the hearing community. Some teachers say they
have no such failures.
It may be, however, that for some reason, either of disordered physiology,
or psychology, that some deaf children can never become oral and
it is important to try and ascertain if this is so, to discover such children
and to teach them appropriately by the best form of sign language. Such
views are by some regarded as heresy but this should not deter the research
worker.
Conclusions
There is need for further fundamental research into many problems of
deafness. A good deal of work is being done but it is either un-co-ordinated
or ill-co-ordinated. It is felt that a central body should be set up to be
responsible for overall planning of research, to draw up a list of priorities
and to allocate reaserch fields to the various centres engaged in research
—both University and clinical centres. If a lead were given by the Ministry
of Education—the most appropriate body—other interested organisations
such as the Medical Research Council, the National Institute of Teachers of
the Deaf, the voluntary societies, the University centres and the school
medical group of the Society of Medical Officers of Health would no
doubt respond.
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